Come Away With Me {Out to See}

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Hellooooooo again! I’m finally back from NYC! I’ve really missed you and this little corner of the world, but you know, I think absence is a good thing sometimes. Not only was I able to soak in every delicious moment of being fully away from the routines of home and work, but I feel refreshed and ready to pour back out again and create more than ever before.

And having my husband be able to come away with me this time to NYC?

Priceless.

{Bonus feature today: If you want to add a little extra ambience as you read this post, you can click play on the Nora Jones video at the bottom. Go ahead, I’ll wait. You are welcome.}

Arriving home after a wonderful vacation can be a little overwhelming after lingering for a week sipping cappuccinos side by side with your love in charming cafes as though you don’t have a care in the world (hello overflowing inbox and a pile up of work I need to get to)!

But the journey is always worth the inconveniences to get there and back again.

Cafe Moomah, SoHo

I’ve been blessed in my life to see the beauty and history of many places around the world.

I know what a gift that is and never for a moment take it for granted.

NY Public Library

Strawberry Fields, Central Park

I have so many wonderful travel memories tucked away from years gone by …

I have floated down the romantic city of Venice in a Gondola, I took a trip on the Orient Express through the lush green hills of Switzerland from Venice to Paris, I’ve sailed through the beautiful salt waters of the San Juan Islands and sipped tea from dainty china in Victoria B.C.

I’ve slept peacefully in a castle and a monastery and to the roar of crashing waves from oceans below my window in creaky old inns. I’ve inhaled the scent of orange blossoms and pineapple groves, and breathed deeply the freshness of sea and mountain air. I’ve seen the beauty of the Black Forest in Germany and stood in awe of the talent of famed artists in the Musee d’Orsay in Paris.

I’ve seen dolphins leaping in the water near our small boat traveling to the island of Lanai, been enchanted on the charming cobblestone streets of Budapest, stood wide-eyed in the beauty of ancient churches and took in the history and triumph and sorrows of many countries, drooled over amazing castles in Germany and London and soaked in the unique music, style, experiences and cafes of cities like Philadelphia, NYC, San Francisco, Nashville, Santa Barbara, Seattle and dozens of other places around the world.

Just writing all the places I’ve been able to see is like counting my blessings!

I think that is why I love blogging so much, it is like getting to experience the beauty of life twice!

My umbrella and me on the rainy streets of NYC

Traveling the world for adventures is an amazing and life-enriching opportunity, but you really don’t have to go to all those far away places to experience beautiful things. Embracing beauty around us is a choice most of us can make in our day to day living.

Real life isn’t always perfectly charming, that is for sure, but I try to savor as many special moments as I can.

Rain or shine, there are so many adventures to be had and remembered for a lifetime, if we let ourselves go out to find and experience them!

When I was a young girl, one of my favorite things to do when I visited my grandparents on Camano Island in Washington was to go “out to sea” (as I referred to it) in the canal behind their home. I’d hop in a little row boat and go to the middle of the water. I would pretend I was out in the open sea on an adventure around the world. {yep, I think I romanticized everything!) I loved going out to sea, it is one of my fondest childhood memories.

I never outgrew my desire to “go out to see” and experience life, whether it is by land or by sea or by charming cafe or quaint local shop!

I think going on a little series of adventures is one of the best ways to find what is truly lovely in this world.

Adventures can be big or small, far or near! What matters is how you will remember them, which is why I love to focus on the colors, the scents, the textures of what I saw, and then relive the experiences often. So I won’t forget.

A party in NYC we weren’t invited to, but couldn’t resist enjoying their striped tent and string lights as we walked by! Such ambience from fabric and lights!

Super stealth photo in Anthropologie, Rockefeller Plaza.

Going “out to see” the beauty around us is a sweet reward after we feel like we’ve poured out all of the energy we have through the hard work and stress of daily survival.

It is a perfect way to recharge and re-energize and re-engage with life.

Going “out to see” and experience something of beauty is a great form of therapy, don’t you think?

great post!! i was just in nyc last month and i can totally relate. we live close enough to nyc that it’s 5 hours by train so we popped up to see what we could see. :o) (that’s what WE call it in this house….see what we can see…when we travel or take trips. lol) loved your photos.

So glad that you had this time away with your beloved. You inspire me to grab mine and take off for the mountains. (NYC would be too much for me. ☺ ) And I loved how you describe your childhood sailing adventures and all the places you have been blessed to see. I could “see” it all, too. Talk about living vicariously.

Gorgeous post..both in photos AND in words. I LOVE that writing lets us experience things twice..beautiful! Glad that you had the opportunity to enjoy some wonderful time with your husband. As soon as this month winds down, I MUST do the same (my husband – not yours :) )
That library photo is breath taking!!

Great photos Melissa!
Your words come across the page, rested and recharged.
I know you’re diving back into ‘life’ and swimming hard to catch up, but I hope the peace gained stays with you a long while.
Blessings!Diane recently posted..Everything {made} Beautiful

You captured so perfectly why I love blogging too — through writing we get to share and relive. And I loved your “out to see” . . . That’s just how I “sea” it. Thank you!Kerry recently posted..Gift of the month

Oh, Melissa, I love this. (Norah Jones rocks, by the way.) This idea of “Out to See”–what a wonderful idea for savoring and drawing inspiration from experiences, such great gifts from God. Sometimes those experiences are far away, sometimes in our own backyards. But to see! Oh, that we would have eyes to see!Richella at Imparting Grace recently posted..Dealing with the ugly and the pretty

I have been lucky enough to be able to travel with my husband who used to be an over the road trucker. When we lived in MT I was able to go with him quite often. I loved it and really miss it. Think I might be part gypsy as usually when we moved it was cause I’d say ok lets go to ?. I did this alot. No more tho. Orders from the other half.
Anyway we went all over the U.S. and Canada, wow di d I enjoy that, being with husband and our dear doggie. What memories we have. Now we go to a park with lake to refresh. I love the water and floating for quite awhile, nothing is as relaxing to me. We live in a rural area west of Grand Junction, CO, the park is only 7 miles from our house. Last summer we found a spot on north side of lake so we could let our (different) dog go swimming while I float. Before we even park he’s half out of the car to go run to “our spot”. For a dog that was afraid of the water at first he loves it now. We feel lucky to live close to the lake which is really only place we can afford to go anymore. Our budget doesn’t stretch enough to go for a ride just for the heck of it. There’s alot to do and see here but we’re happy with “our little lake”. We thought about moving again but that place doesn’t have Highline Lake.
Glad you had such a nice time with your hubby. Those times are very important. Hubby and I started out with my 3 kids when we married so we never had just our time first. Then we had a daughter so really enjoyed those times trucking. Have a great week.

Melissa, you’ve seen and experienced all the places I’ve always dreamed of.I am glad for you to have and share all these precious memories.
Our place to relax and hangout with our family is Cape Cod. It’s like a 10 hr. road trip from Niagara Falls. We’ve been going every summer for the last 13 yrs. Even tho’ our kids are married and have little ones of their own, we’re still making it a family vacation. Everyone’s going. Even their grandmother, for the first time this year.We always stay within walking distance to the beach. And we can visit Martha’s Vineyard, Boston, or Salem, or any other historical town on the Cape. Christmas Tree Shops are wonderful for shopping all kinds of decorating goodies and New England foodstuffs at very reasonable prices. And great antique malls and ice cream shops! We love it all!Irma recently posted..Come Away With Me {Out to See}

Loved your pictures and descriptions of all of the beautiful places you have visited. I especially love your “Out to See” motto…the world is so beautiful and so full of things to see and experience.Meaningful Nest recently posted..Mickey and Friends, Here We Come! (Need Your Advice!)

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip, which is great! My favorite ‘recharge’ time is camping. If I go home there’s too much family to see and not enough time, if we go somewhere new I have to take photos of everything. But camping, though I do like to go nature walking with my camera, doesn’t have the same urgency to capture as many moments as possible.Carla recently posted..House Treasures